Zhan Zheng Xi
Zhan Zheng Xi (展正希; Chinese: Zhǎn Zhèng Xī) is Jian Yi's handsome, humble, and emotionally repressed best friend since childhood. He doesn't have many interests outside of playing video games, reading comics, and being with Jian Yi. He is the most rational and level headed of the four main characters. Description He has light brown hair, grey-blue eyes, and dark eyebrows. He is very fit and muscular. He is very protective of Jian Yi, and often pulls him out of various tight situations. He has a younger sister and lives with both his mother and his father. He goes to the same middle school as Jian Yi, He Tian, and Mo Guan Shan. Zhan Zheng Xi is notably the most serious, quiet, and calm out of the four boys. He appears very stoic and intimidating given his constant expression of an indifferent poker face. Although his appearance is very tough looking on the surface, he is actually very kind and caring; he often tries to see the good in people. For example, he easily forgives Guan Shan for nearly killing him by hitting his head violently with a rock, even without an apology, saying "That redhead.. doesn't seem that evil". He also helps, along with Jian Yi, clear Guan Shan's name from being falsely accused of sexually assaulting a female student. He takes everything Jian Yi says or asks with careful consideration and puts a lot of thought into it. He also strives to try and make Jian Yi as happy as possible, always there to try and lift his mood or comfort him when need be. He often, without being asked, takes care of Jian Yi when he is sick, injured, or happens to be drunk. Plot Zheng Xi highly values Jian Yi's life over his own, constantly putting Jian Yi before himself; when Jian Yi throws himself off a bridge into a river to retrieve Zheng Xi's phone - he immediately, without a second thought, throws himself after him and grabs him to protect and shield him from the fall. He later gets into a fight with Guan Shan who was trying to bully Jian Yi, nearly losing his life when Guan Shan violently smashes his head with a rock, and he also willingly lets himself be taken in Jian Yi's place during a night of an attempted kidnapping. He is very attached and clingy with Jian Yi, although not as obvious as Jian Yi is always with him; he will complain to Jian Yi if separated from him for one school period, if Jian Yi is leaving a room or he doesn't know where he is - he will often panic and worry, and when Jian Yi becomes kidnapped for two days by an unknown man. He rants his frustration to He Tian about the situation while looking extremely stressed and exhausted, ending the conversation solemnly saying "I want to see him". He is very observant over Jian Yi, always keeping a watchful eye on him, one day even secretly following him around at school (without him knowing) from a few feet behind, as he became increasingly worried for him, not knowing that Jian Yi was struggling with the threat of a future fight he was to have with Guan Shan after school and dealing with feelings of jealousy over Xiao Hui's crush on him. Zheng Xi is very overprotective of Jian Yi; he won't allow anyone to hit him, having acted as Jian Yi's shield and sword since their adolescence. When they were younger, he promises Jian Yi that should any harm come his way, "Until you are strong enough... I will protect you". Following this promise, when he first meets Guan Shan, he mercilessly pummels his face when he witnesses him threaten and choke Jian Yi by the neck, telling him "If you dare lay a hand on him... I will never let you off." He gets extremely angry when he overhears a few girls talking badly about a guy, who he thinks is Jian Yi based on how they describe the appearance of the man, in an inappropriate manner; he slams his fist against their desk and sternly defends his honor, only to find out they were actually talking about a fictional BL character on a cover, much to his embarrassment. He also tries to protect Jian Yi from being kidnapped by letting himself be taken in his place rather than give up Jian Yi’s presence. Relationships Although not as clear and blatant as Jian Yi, Zheng Xi has made a few questionable gestures that indicate his feelings towards Jian Yi are not platonic. He admits to finding Jian Yi handsome, blushing while saying so. He finds himself blushing on several other occasions also because of Jian Yi; such as when he removes a caterpillar off Jian Yi's junk, when Jian Yi discovers he keeps a loose photo of them holding hands from their childhood, when Jian Yi teasingly pokes fun at a confession he made while holding his hand stating "I want to be a grown up faster.. become stronger.. so that I can protect you". When Jian Yi calls himself "his man" and tells a little girl at a park they are on a date, which he doesn't deny. And also when Xiao Hui directly asks Zhan Zheng Xi if he likes Jian Yi and he admits that he does, saying "hng. he is very important. he is someone who cannot be replaced" as well as several other moments. For Jian Yi's birthday, he takes Jian Yi to a hidden away, secluded spot on top of a mountain with an unusually romantic view, putting a lot of thought into it saying it was a place he had “''Always'' wanted to bring him to” and preparing a bunch of sparklers for them to light up together as a surprise, which appealed better to Jian Yi's emotions rather than just buying him a gift. His sister Zhan Zi Qian also notes that Zheng Xi has appeared to be drifting from her, as Jian Yi becomes the most important person in his life; not only does he remember Jian Yi’s birthday and plans something special for him, he accidentally completely forgets her birthday. Another instance where Jian Yi’s significance to Zheng Xi is noted is when he rejects Xiao Hui’s love letter. He not only rejects the letter because he merely found it annoying and had no feelings for her, but admits that he also rejected it because he feels it would hurt Jian Yi. After Jian Yi helps squash the embarrassment of her love letter being made public by an unknown student, he tells her how irresponsible it was to write something like that to which she insults him, calling him abnormal and that he’s a disgusting gay which prompts him to start yelling angrily. Although both are emotional and Xiao Hui shakes in tears and fear, Zhan Zheng Xi chooses to comfort Jian Yi first and stops him by holding his hand tightly and cradling the back of his neck when Jian Yi tries to walk away, letting him know that he was there for him. After that, he goes to politely reject her when Jian Yi tells him to comfort her and tells her that someday she would find someone who would love her in return that, Xiao Hui later gets along with them and provides a crucial piece of evidence that gets Guan Shan out of a terrible situation. Zheng Xi is also the one to initiate all of their handholds; with the exception of one from when he was asleep, and continues to vow protecting him like he always had. He occasionally shows Jian Yi other signs of affection as well, such as cradling the back of his head or his face gently, stroking his hair, and kissing his forehead softly when Jian Yi officially and wholeheartedly confesses to him. In a Valentine's Day special, he gives Jian Yi a piece of chocolate. In a Christmas special, he becomes extremely jealous when a girl flirts with Jian Yi in front of him. Zheng Xi suddenly becomes silent and his expression changes to one of annoyance, which Jian Yi himself points out. Initially, he had a hard time understanding Jian Yi’s feelings for him could be anything romantic. He thought Jian Yi invading personal space and being overly affectionate like a dog was a part of his character. Later though, when Jian Yi runs away after he unexpectedly kisses Zheng Xi, Zheng Xi immediately chases after him. Trying to understand what happened and what Jian Yi is feeling, he asks him if he likes men; to which Jian Yi tearfully denies saying, “That‘s not.... is that what you think this is?” This answer only confuses Zheng Xi even more. Although that same night, Jian Yi asks Zheng Xi to pretend none of it happened, over the next few days, Zheng Xi can’t help but keep wondering what it all meant. He continues to try to be considerate of Jian Yi’s wishes, of pretending it didn’t happen, but he has a hard time forgetting about it. He opts to try and cautiously find out Jian Yi’s feelings by repeatedly asking him what he’s thinking, although the responses back continued to be vague or unceremoniously interrupted. It isn’t until a few nights later, that Zheng Xi decides to be more forward and directly ask Jian Yi if he likes him. Jian Yi, nervously, but finally confesses his true feelings to Zheng Xi saying “I like you so much, I’m going to explode. Whether it was before or in the future... only you...” With this, Zheng Xi’s thoughts are presented: “我知道了”, meaning “I know” / “I understand” (some people opt for either or, they convey the same meaning) as he gently lays a kiss to Jian Yi’s forehead, affirming that he finally now understood and accepted Jian Yi’s feelings for him, that he liked him - him only, not all men - and that he was longer confused. After Jian Yi's confession, Zheng Xi seems to become even more affectionate than before. He, presumed to be the one to bring Jian Yi back to bed, sleeping with him even though early on he would tell Jian Yi to sleep separately from him. The next day they went out on a date to a park and later that same night, an arcade - where Zheng Xi gets Jian Yi a commemorative coin, but he wanted to keep it a secret, since China is not a country where being openly gay is socially acceptable just yet. And at school, as compared to the beginning of the story where he fears how people may view him from simply picking out a piece of rice from Jian Yi's hair, he went out of his own volition decidedly sits on Jian Yi's lap in front of a bunch of other students. At the current plot line, they appear to be dating, being seen shopping together, playing with kittens, and talking to each other openly. Zheng Xi also seem to be thinking of the future of them together when he wonders if Jian Yi would go to the same school as he as Jian Yi’s academics are questionable. He agrees to put some faith into him though when asked and hugs Jian Yi preciously and without the awkwardness of before. One day, after following Jian Yi to visit Mo Guan Shan at his house, Zhan Zheng Xi and Jian Yi go out shopping together. While out shopping Zhan Zheng Xi and Jian Yi run into Xiao Hui, and Jian Yi offers for her to join them out to eat. Xiao Hui, not wanting to disturb them, hesitantly agrees. When the three of them find a place to eat, Jian Yi ends up leaving Xiao Hui and Zhan Zheng Xi alone for a moment when he offers to get up and grab her a drink. After Jian Yi is gone, the air between them becomes a little awkward since Zhan Zheng Xi had only politely rejected her confession not too long ago and this was the first time they were alone since then. After a bit of silence, Xiao Hui nervously asks Zhan Zheng Xi if he likes someone and in tears but with a smile, asks if it is Jian Yi. Zhan Zheng Xi, showing a rare grin, admits that he does like Jian Yi and says “he is very important. he is someone who cannot be replaced”. After this, Jian Yi comes back and they all continue shopping together. After trying on a shirt, Jian Yi drags Zhan Zheng Xi over the hair product section and the moment between them suddenly becomes intimate: Jian Yi suggests for some gel to be put into Zhan Zheng Xi’s hair and ends up grooming it a bit, they silently stare at each other, and he tells him he looks very handsome that way. Unknown to them, Xiao-Hui watches from behind a wall, not wanting to intrude on a moment that felt private to them; Xiao-Hui ends up excitedly freaking out over their moment together, becoming extremely flustered, showing that after Zhan Zheng Xi’s confession to her, she has finally understood and come to accept that Zheng Xi would have no eyes for anyone but Jian Yi, and finally fully supports their relationship - unlike how she was at the beginning, where she was jealous of Jian Yi and would lash out at him. Name * 展正希 Pīnyīn： Zhǎn Zhēng Xī * Romaji pronunciation: Jyaen Jyun-Shii. * Hear his name pronounced: https://translate.google.com/#zh-CN/en/%E5%B1%95%E6%AD%A3%E5%B8%8C * His fan nickname 炸毛 is pronounced Zha Mao and literally translates to "fried hair." * Jian Yi gave him the nickname "Xi Xi." * His name is Nobumasa, Nozomi in Japanese and Jeon Jeong-Hui in Korean. * His name hanzi translates literally to “pure/honest hope” Trivia & Speculation * Likes video games and manhua. He has a large collection in his room. * Dislikes playing games with Zi Qian, because she always wins. * Keeps a large number of identical outfits in his closet. * The recurring girl who has a crush on him; Xiao Hui, was not given a name until chapter 157. * Frequently finds himself carrying Jian Yi piggyback. * By this point, he should stop being surprised when Jian Yi jumps on top of him and just come to expect it as Jian Yi often greets him by shouting his name and jumping onto him. * He reads One Piece. * He owns a PS Vita. * Surprisingly sentimental; keeps a loose photograph of his first meeting with Jian Yi in his photo album. * He keeps Heineken stocked in his fridge. * Although Zheng Xi seems to attract the attention of multiple girls in school: blushing around him or even asking Jian Yi about him, he does not like the attention. He admits so to Jian Yi when Jian Yi decides to reluctantly hand Zheng Xi a love letter from an admirer, Xiao Hui, saying “this kind of thing is so annoying...”. The audience later finds out that Zheng Xi didn’t even bother reading the letter as it gets into the hold of an unknown person’s hands and spread on a school board for all students to see. * If he's not paying attention, Jian Yi will usually greet him by grabbing or slapping his ass or pulling on the waistband of his boxers, or by jumping on top of him. * He and Jian Yi are the same height. They can carry each other's weight. * While Jian Yi looked significantly more young, thin and androgynous in junior high, the only real changes to Zheng Xi's face is his eyelashes were thicker in junior high. * He and Jian Yi work at Mosspaca Cafe after high school. * He is not as tolerant of Jian Yi’s sexual and romantic advances in the early post-high school chapters and treats him with some aggression. This seems to suggest that he becomes hurt and bitter over Jian Yi’s disappearance, although they get closer as the series progresses, and he eventually gets over it, and down along the line they become a couple based on official future illustrations. The strange and uneven flow of some parts of the story from past to future, such as for example Zheng Xi not really trusting Jian Yi’s story of being kidnapped despite being nearly kidnapped in front of him once has caused fans to speculate if the early comedic half of the story is even canon and/or wonder if Old Xian had plans on changing some things or rebooted the series around the time He Tian shows up. * In official illustrations of the boys in a band, Zheng Xi and Jian Yi are shown to be wearing matching couples rings on their wedding fingers (third ring finger of left hand). * The author displays Zhan Zheng Xi’s thought in response to Jian Yi’s confession as “我知道了” as he kisses Jian Yi’s forehead. Translating to “I know” / “I understand”. The ‘了’ - suffix for present tense, which shows an affirmation that he now finally understood Jian Yi’s feelings for him since he hadn’t before. * When he's in a band during or after high school, he is the drummer. * Based on a few illustrations, he seems to wear piercings in the future. One in his ear and another in his eyebrow. * Be it intentionally or coincidentally, he seems to be the best at basketball of the four, always being the one to shoot the last hoop. *Sucks his thumb in his sleep. *Wears Mosspaca brand clothing, which is either a reference to Old Xian's other series; Mosspaca Advertising Department, or the company Old Xian works at; Mosspaca Agency. *In a Chinese Valentine's Day official illustration where Zhan Zheng Xi kisses/sucks on Jian Yi's ear, they each wear shirts with hanzi on them. Zhan Zheng Xi's says "一生" and Jian Yi's says "一世", which translates to "for life"/"for eternity". Quotes * "Until you are strong enough, I will protect you." - young Zhan Zheng Xi to a young Jian Yi in their childhood years * "It's okay, I'm here. I have super powers, I'll send you strength."- young Zhan Zheng Xi to a young Jian Yi in their childhood years * "You'll have to beat me first. If you dare lay a hand on him, I will never let you off." - Zhan Zheng Xi's threat to Mo Guan Shan after he tries to beat up Jian Yi * "When you aren't such a spazz, you are pretty handsome." - Zhan Zheng Xi to Jian Yi * "This is a place I've always wanted to bring you to." - Zhan Zheng Xi to Jian Yi * "Jian Yi. I... want to see you now." - Zhan Zheng Xi to Jian Yi through a phone call, while injured in the hospital * "Shut up. He's not that kind of person." Zhan Zheng Xi (about Jian Yi) to two school girls he thought were speaking ill of Jian Yi * "I'm here." - Zhan Zheng Xi to Jian Yi after a drunk Jian Yi shows how hurt he is after being called 'abnormal' by another student in regards to his sexuality. * "I want to be a grown up faster, become stronger.. so that I can protect you." - Zhan Zheng Xi to Jian Yi * "I want to see him." - Zhan Zheng Xi about Jian Yi, after they were separated for two days when he was kidnapped. * "I'll sleep with you tonight." - Zhan Zheng Xi to Jian Yi * "Jian Yi, do you like me? Is it that kind of 'like'?" - Zhan Zheng Xi to Jian Yi * "Hng. He is very important. He is someone who cannot be replaced." - Zhan Zheng Xi admitting he likes Jian Yi to Xiao Hui Gallery 2E8EFF19-858C-40C5-84C2-A3C4434D0BAA.jpeg|Zhan Zheng Xi chibi form Xixi.PNG|Zhan Zheng Xi in high school Future_zhan_zheng_xi_and_jian_yi.jpg|Future Zhan Zheng Xi and Jian Yi C3B10D3B-393A-4795-A4BB-EC7FEA4954B5.jpeg|Zhan Zheng Xi and Jian Yi future. Chibi_zhan_zheng_xi_and_jian_yi.png|chibi zhan zheng xi and jian yi Zhan_Zheng_Xi_and_Jian_YI_in_the_future.jpg|future zhan zheng xi and jian yi 7-0.jpg|rock band zhan zheng Xi and jian yi Zhan_zheng_xi_with_glasses.jpg|zhan zheng xi with glasses Christmas_art.jpg|christmas art Chibizhanyis.png|chibi zhan zheng xi holding up a chibi jian yi for a very long time Zheng_xi_and_jian_yi.jpg|zhan zheng xi and jian yi Zhan_Zheng_Xi_and_Jian_Yi_french_kissing.jpg|zhan zheng xi and jian yi french kissing Zhan_Zheng_Xi_and_Jian_Yi_touching_one_another.jpg|zhan zheng xi touching jian yi Zheng Xi with an ear piercing.jpg|jian yi sitting on zhan zheng xi's lap; zheng xi has an ear piercing Jian_Yi_&_Zhan_Zheng_Xi_huggin_and_grasping_each_other_as_they_kiss.png|zhan zheng xi and jian yi kissing as they embrace newillu.jpg|zhan zheng xi sucking on jian yi's ear chibizhanyi.jpg|chibi zhan zheng xi carrying chibi jian yi on his shoulder Chibizhanyisharefood.jpg|chibi zhanyi sharing food together - jian yi feeds zhan zheng xi Officialzhanyisketchscancleaned.jpg|zhanyi - zhan zheng xi holding jian yi in his lap intimately with his face buried in his chest Translated.jpg|zhan zheng xi taking a photo of jian yi with his phone translated2.jpg|sleepy/tired zhan zheng xi officialzhansketchscancleaned.jpg|zhan zheng xi shirtless sketch chibizhanyitencent.jpg|chibi zhanyi xichibi.jpg|chibi zhan zheng xi holding jian yi merchandise Zhanyichibi.jpg|chibi zhanyi promoting merchandise Category:Characters Category:Male